Monday, September 6, 2010

Answer of the Day
What bestselling book was rejected by 121 publishers? Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance is probably the most popular philosophy book of the seventies — and still going strong — with more than five million copies sold worldwide. It appears in Guinness World Records as the bestselling book rejected by the largest number of publishers (121). The story of the seventeen-day journey of a father and his son across the United States from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to California, is described by author Robert Pirsig as a kind of Chautauqua — a series of talks designed to educate and entertain. Happy birthday to Pirsig, born on this day in 1928.

Quote
"I am probably the most selfish man you will ever meet in your life. No one gets the satisfaction or the joy that I get out of seeing kids realize there is hope." — Jerry Lewis

Word of the day

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Today's History

Saint Petersburg

• William McKinley: US president was shot by an anarchist; he died eight days later (1901)
• Piggly Wiggly: the first self-service supermarket opened in Memphis, Tennessee (1916)
• Queen Juliana: popular monarch assumed the throne of the Netherlands, which she retained until 1980 (1948)
• Hendrik Verwoerd: South African prime minister was stabbed to death by a deranged parliamentary messenger in parliament in Cape Town (1966)
• Saint Petersburg: the original name was restored after the Russian city had been Leningrad since 1924 (1991)
• Cal Ripken Jr.: played in his 2,131st consecutive game and broke Lou Gehrig's "unbreakable" record (1995); his streak ended at 2,632 games on September 20, 1998

Today's Birthdays

John Dalton

• Marie-Joseph Lafayette (1757-1834): French general who aided colonists in the American Revolution
• John Dalton (1766-1844): scientist who researched color blindness, known as Daltonism; scientists J.J.R. Macleod (1876-1936), Walter Robert Dornberger (1895-1980) and Luis Leloir (1906-1987) were also born on this date
• Jane Addams: social reformer who founded Chicago's Hull House settlement (1860-1935)
• Jeff Foxworthy (52): actor, comedian and host of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?; other actors born on this date include JoAnne Worley (73), Swoosie Kurtz (66), Jane Curtin (63), Rosie Perez (46), Dylan Bruno, Idris Elba and Anika Noni Rose (all 38), Justin Whalin (36) and Naomie Harris (34)
• Elizabeth Vargas (48): broadcast journalist, 20/20
• Foxy Brown (31): rapper; musicians David Allen Coe (71), Mel McDaniel (68), Roger Waters (67), Buddy Miller (58), Scott Travis (49), Macy Gray (43) and CeCe Peniston (41) share this birth date